"Alright, this match will be decided if either side forfeits or can no longer fight. Ready, begin!" Yozakura shouted.

Yumi shot a ice shard at Yukio, and he fired off a knife that parried the shard. Yukio rushed towards Yumi and went to slash her, but she blocked the attack with her right fan and smacked Yukio with her left fan. She blew icy wind that sent Yukio back.

So Yumi is more of an ice-magic fighter. she doesn't really use any combat skills, so I should continue rushing her.

Yukio tried to rush and attack Yumi again, he saw a blue figure of Yumi smacking him with her fan, and he was able to dodge the actual attack.

"Alright! Timer!" Yukio shouted, and time stopped.

Let's see how you handle the ballistic barrage.

Yukio ran around Yumi and fired off the ballistic knives from all angles. Time resumed, Yumi noticed the many knives that flew towards her. Yumi spun around, which generated enough icy wind to blow all of the knives back.

Yukio managed to dodge the reflected knives, but Yumi rushed towards him and kicked him back.

"Ugh!" Yukio rolled on the floor, he then got back on his hands and knees.

Come on!

Yukio rushed Yumi again, foresaw her first attack and dodged it, which put some distance between them. Yumi then combined her fans into a circle, and spun it to generate a ice lance in front of the fans.

"Secret Ninja Art, Black Ice!" Yumi said, as she thrusted her fans forward, which fired the ice lance towards Yukio. He foresaw the lance flying towards him, so he was able to dodge it just in time.

"Whoa!" Yukio was shocked by Yumi's power. Yukio turned his attention back to Yumi, and she fired an icicle shard at him, but he fired a knife that parried it just in time. He then fired one straight at Yumi, but she was able to easily block it with her fans. Yukio rushed towards her, and tried to slash her.

All Yukio did was slash Yumi's left wrist. She wasn't able to move her thumb, and she dropped her left fan.

"Impressive." Yumi said as she held her left wrist.

"Let me guess, you're right-handed?" Yukio asked as he put distance between them.

"Correct, and I won't let you get that close again." Yumi said.

"Sure...Timer!" Yukio said, and time froze around him. He rushed to Yumi and cut her right wrist.

Time resumed, and Yukio stumbled from a sudden headache.

"Ugh!" Yukio got blown back by Yumi's icy wind.

Yukio got up on his feet, and Yumi dropped her other fan.

"Now you can't hold your weapon. That means I win, right?" Yukio said.

"I may have lost my weapons, but that doesn't mean I can't fight." Yumi replied.

Ice shards surrounded her, and each one fired towards Yukio.

"Erg...Ti-" Yukio's head throbbed, and prevented him from activating his power.

I'm already at my limit?! Damn it.

Yukio aimed his ballistic knives, and fired knife after knife that shattered every ice shard. Yukio couldn't get a moment to catch his breath, as Yumi rushed towards him.

Yukio tried to kick Yumi back, but she blocked the attack with her hands, and spin-kicked him in the face. Yukio was knocked on his back, and Yumi tried to attack again. However, he foresaw the attack, and was able to roll out of the way.

Yukio got back up, but Yumi rushed him again. He tried to slash her using his knives, but she blocked the attack by hitting Yukio's wrists with her hands. Yukio continued to slash at her, but Yumi kept hitting Yukio's wrists to stop the attack. Yumi then pushed her palm out towards Yukio's chest, and it staggered him. Yukio foresaw another kick, but he couldn't move fast enough to dodge it.

Yukio was kicked in the side, and his body gave out as he collapsed to the ground.

"The battle is over, Yumi is the winner!" Yozakura shouted.

"Damn...it..." Yukio cursed, as he passed out.

"You did excellent, Yukio. You fought as well as I did. Your attacks were precise and you didn't pull your punches." Yumi said in a gentle tone, and she carried him off the ground.

A few hours later, Yukio woke up, and saw a cherry blossom tree towering above him. He was laying on a futon in the center of the main room. He looked around and saw Yumi sitting on her knees next to him.

"Hmm? Oh, you're awake." Yumi said in her usual monotone voice.

"How long was I out for this time?" Yukio asked.

"You were asleep until dusk." Yumi replied.

"I see, so it's nighttime already." Yukio said to himself. He looked around the main room, and the rest of the students were gone.

"Where did everyone else go?" Yukio asked.

"Their dorms, each of the doors here lead to one of our rooms." Yumi answered.

"That's nice, having dorms attached to the school. Hanzo's dorms are a few blocks away from the school's campus." Yukio replied.

Yukio sat up, and turned to Yumi. Yukio saw that her wrists have fully healed already, which made him let out a sigh of relief.

"I'm glad your wrists are fine. I didn't want to cause any permanent damage." Yukio said with his head down.

"I healed them myself. My 'ice magic' as you call it, was able to stop the bleeding, as well as heal the wound." Yumi explained.

Yukio looked away from Yumi, and she did the same.

I don't know if it's because I know about her past or because I feel intimidated by her, but I don't know what to say to her...after she helped me get stronger, I think she deserves some of the truth. That way, she'll be able to trust me a bit.

Yukio hesitated for a moment, then raised his head, and turned back towards Yumi.

"One of my powers, makes me see past events through someone else's point of view. I named the power Soul Travel. I've learned about my friends pasts through that power." Yukio explained.

Yumi also raised her head and looked back at Yukio.

"Now, don't freak out when I tell you this." Yukio took a deep breath, prepared to tell them about his Soul Travel. "I've also seen your past as well. All of you lost your parents, and Kurokage took you in. All five of you girls looked up to him, and you want to make his dream a reality." Yukio said.

He took another deep breath, and calmed himself. "One thing I didn't understand was your harshness towards Evil Shinobi. I understand that they are evil, yes, but they all have their own stories and reasons for joining that side of the Shinobi world. You say you want to get rid of all evil, but what is considered 'evil' to you?"

"I expected you to have a power like that." Yumi simply replied.

She looked at Yukio with a worried expression. "To know others backgrounds so that you can use that to weaken them. You did that with the new Hebijo Elites when we fought them."

Yumi went silent for a moment, then let out a sigh. "When I said I was sent to capture you, I was actually sent to kill you and the other Hanzo Shinobi. The way the Gessen Shinobi and I saw your conflict at Hebijo Academy was that you joined with Evil Shinobi, and let them escape with their lives. Myself and the rest of my classmates saw that as treason." She said.

Yukio was surprised by her explanation.

Wait, so when she killed me in my very first meeting with her. She meant to do that?! Not only that, but she was willing to kill Asuka because we helped Homura and her team. Even though they are friends!

"However, despite your involvement with the previous Hebijo elites, you still despised Evil Shinobi. When you shouted at me not to kill any of the new Hebijo Elites. I thought you were a fool for not wanting anyone to die, but then you stood up to Ryobi twice, and saved an Evil Shinobi who was willing to sacrifice herself to save her sister." Yumi explained.

I only despise people that either hurt me or my friends. Even then, I still wouldn't want to kill anyone.

"Yumi, I-" Yukio was interrupted, as Yumi continued her monologue.

"You saved everyone, not just your friends, but the Evil Shinobi as well. I could've enacted my justice on you when I brought you here, but you proved to me that good and evil aren't so black and white. Ryobi and Ryona's complexity with avenging their sister, Murasaki risking her own life to save her sister, and clearing up the misunderstanding with Miyabi. Those reasons, along with plenty others, have stopped me from enacting the kind of justice I've known my whole life." Yumi said.

"So even if I've gone against your 'justice', you see me as a good person?" Yukio asked.

"I see you as a kind and gentle boy, who has the ability to become a great man." Yumi said, as she smiled.

The statement left Yukio speechless, and he blushed.

"Well...thanks, Yumi." Yukio replied.

"I don't mind that you saw our pasts. I trust that you'll use the information for good, and not for any greedy reasons." Yumi said.

"Don't worry, I know how to keep a secret." Yukio replied.

Yukio heard Yumi silently giggle, which made him smile.

"That's good then." Yumi said.

"Well, I'm glad we got that over with." Yukio said.

"Indeed, I should be heading to bed. Goodnight, Yukio." Yumi stood up, and walked to a blue colored door. She entered the room, leaving Yukio by himself under the cherry blossom tree.

Man, this tree really made the atmosphere more heart-warming. With the amount of times she talked about almost killing me, it would've been a terrifying atmosphere otherwise.

"Since I took a nap, I'm not really tired." Yukio said to himself. He laid in the futon, and stared up at the cherry blossom tree. He listened to the running water within the bamboo fence.

This whole academy is so relaxing...Hanzo academy never had a room like this. Speaking of, I wonder what they are doing right now? Only one way to find out.

"Soul Travel!" Yukio said, as time stopped and he was ripped out of his body.

Yukio woke up in a different body, and saw the lights were out. Four of the Hanzo girls were sitting on their beds, holding flashlights while in their pajamas. The only one Yukio couldn't find was Asuka, so he concluded that he was inside Asuka's body.

"So, ladies. Girl talk night?" Katsuragi asked while she smirked.

Oh god, what does the blonde perv want to talk about? It better not be...

"If you're going to ask about our breasts, I'm going to bed." Ikaruga said, the black haired Shinobi glared at Katsuragi.

I was about to say that.

"I'll pass as well, unless Hibari wants to talk about that." Yagyu said, the white pigtailed Shinobi blushed a little bit.

"Yeah! I think everyone should talk with us." Hibari replied, the short pink haired Shinobi was blissfully unaware of what Yagyu meant.

"I'm ready for a girl talk night." Asuka said, Yukio couldn't see her, but the brown haired Shinobi smiled at the other four.

"I wasn't going to talk about breasts...unless we want to-" Katsuragi smirked.

"No!" The other four girls shouted.

"Ok fine, how about...hehe, since he won't be here for a while, let's talk about Yukio." Katsuragi smirked again.

"I don't like that look, Katsu. What are you planning to talk about?" Ikaruga asked.

"Oh nothing really, we're going to be pointing out what we like about Yukio. No bad mouthing, and nothing too embarrassing." Katsuragi explained.

"I guess that's fine." Asuka said.

Aww, they're going to complement me behind my back. I feel guilty for invading the girl talk, but I want to hear what they say about me.

"Fine then, who's starting?" Yagyu asked.

"I'll go first!" Hibari said cheerfully. "Yukio's really kind and considerate, he was nice to me when I told him how boring my backstory was."

I can't stop smiling, Hibari's so adorable.

Hibari pointed to her right, and Yagyu was next to share.

"Well..." Yagyu hesitated, and Yukio saw a hint of red in her cheeks. "Yukio helped a lot when I tried to get Hibari out of the large Shinobi barrier. So he was really reliable." Yagyu admitted.

Yagyu...heh, it's like she fell in love with me when I helped her then...I'm sure she just respected me for it.

Yagyu pointed to the person on her right, who was Katsuragi.

"Alright, hmm..." Katsuragi thought for half a minute. A small blush appeared on her face, but Yukio didn't notice it.

Hey, I know I didn't do anything special for you, Katsu, but don't keep silent.

"He's fun to tease and chat with, but he can be as serious as Ikaruga sometimes. Maybe that's why I compare you two so much." Katsuragi said.

That's not...that's not even a compliment! 'Fun to tease'?! What is that supposed to mean?!

"Comparing us? What is that supposed to mean, Katsu?" Ikaruga interjected.

"Now now, Ikaruga. It's your turn, tell us one good thing about Yukio." Katsuragi avoided Ikaruga's question.

Ikaruga let out an annoyed sigh, then looked away from everyone.

"Yukio is...very understanding. When he found out about my backstory, he...helped me face it head on." Ikaruga said, Yukio could tell that she didn't want to reveal the whole story.

Ikaruga...I didn't know that meant so much to her. Back then...I thought I was just being selfish. then I've learned that my actions mean something because of her.

"Alright, last but not least, Asuka." Katsuragi said, and pointed at her.

Alright, since I'm in her body, I can't tell if she's blushing or not. I've just got to hear what she says.

"Well...I think Yukio is a really nice boy who tries his best to help everyone around him simply because he wants to. I want to be like him someday." Asuka said.

Her last statement caught Yukio off-guard.

She wants to be like me? That...came out of nowhere, but I'm glad she feels that way.

Katsuragi then thought of an idea. "Let's have a little anonymous voting. Everyone, turn off your lights, close your eyes, and don't open them until I say so."

"What are we doing now, Katsu?" Ikaruga was suspicious of her.

I don't trust Katsu either, whatever she's planning is going to end badly.

"Just close your eyes, I'm gonna do the same." Katsuragi closed her eyes.

Then the rest of the girls closed their eyes as well. However, Yukio could still see everything.

What are you planning, Katsu? What kind of voting are they doing?

"Ahem, alright girls. Raise your hand high up if you respect Yukio." All the girls raised their hands.

Wait, I can't see if Asuka's raising her hand because I'm in her body. I feel my right arm stretching, so she's probably raising her right hand.

"Alright, now keep your hand up if you like him as a person. Remember, eyes still closed." Katsuragi said, and all the girls kept their hands up.

Hmm...so this voting is how they feel about me? Well...they like as a person, which is all I really want.

"Now, keep your hand up if you see him as a friend." Katsuragi continued, and everyone still kept their hands up.

Aww, that's nice. Everyone sees me as a friend. Also, my arm is getting sore from Asuka holding her hand up for this long.

"Now, for the big question. Everyone better keep their eyes shut for this one...keep your hand up if you 'like' like Yukio." Katsuragi said.

Alright, this is where everyone's hands go down. I know none of them see me as 'that'.

However, only Hibari put her hand down. Yukio saw Ikaruga's, Katsuragi's, and Yagyu's hand still raised high in the air, while their faces were as red as a tomato. Yukio also still felt his right arm stretching. Which confirmed for him that Asuka was also still raising her hand. That vote made Yukio's heart skip a beat.

Huh? S-Seriously? Four of the girls...have a crush on me...Why?! How?! Ok, Ikaruga...I 'kind of' understand, she cried in front of me while telling me about her backstory and I helped her face her past. Yagyu...maybe, I didn't think saving Hibari meant so much to her but maybe it was because she felt understood. Katsu...I mean I see her as a fun person to flirt with sometimes so maybe that's why she likes me. Finally, I have no clue why Asuka likes me. Was it something I said? Maybe it's because she was the first Shinobi I talked to, and I made a great first impression back then maybe? I don't believe this. Four out of the five girls that I hung out with have a crush on me?!

"Now, keep your hand up if you wish he felt the same." Katsuragi said, the four girls kept their hands up, and Hibari raised her hand back up.

Yukio woke up back in his body, and he wasn't able to sleep for the rest of the night.

To be continued...in volume 3!